Ethics Rules for EPA Employees who have Accepted Deferred Resignation
Although you accepted Deferred Resignation (DR), you are still an EPA employee until you officially retire or terminate from EPA. The expected date of your resignation is September 30, 2025. Until that date (or whenever you separate officially from EPA) and no matter your type of appointment, you are subject to the federal ethics laws and regulations, including the following:
- EPA supplemental ethics regulations regarding outside activity
- e.g., you have to seek prior approval from an ethics official for certain employment activities, even if uncompensated
- Criminal representational conflict of interest statutes
- You cannot represent someone else back to the United States government, even if you are uncompensated
- The Hatch Act
- e.g., you still can’t fundraise for a political party or partisan candidate
In addition, if you are a public financial disclosure filer (e.g., career SES, ALJ, SL/ST, some Title 42s or acting in one of these positions), then you have continuing filing obligations
Financial Disclosure Obligations
If you currently file the OGE 278 (e.g., career SES, ALJ, SL/ST, some Title 42 or acting in one of these positions)
You are still statutorily required to submit an annual and/or termination disclosure reports. See Deferred Resignation: Rules for Public Financial Disclosure Filers
If you are designated to file the Confidential Financial Disclosure report (the e450)
Because you will not be performing EPA duties while in DR status, EPA Ethics has determined that you do not have to file the e450 by the March 20th filing deadline. If you already filed the report, thank you and there is nothing else for you to do.
Continuing Hatch Act Obligations
Even on DR status, you are still subject to the Hatch Act, which governs the political activity of federal employees even in your personal capacity. “Political activity” is defined as any activity directed at the success or failure of a candidate for partisan election, a political party, or a partisan political group. Even in your personal capacity, the following prohibitions apply to you, all the time, 24/7.
NEVER:
- Solicit, accept, or receive political contributions
- Run for partisan political office
- Use your EPA affiliation or title in connection with political activity
- Engage in political activity in the federal workplace, including displaying candidate photos or partisan political items such as paraphernalia or campaign slogans
- Coerce subordinates to engage in political activity
- Accept volunteer services from a subordinate
- Use your official EPA authority to interfere with the outcome of an election
- Solicit or discourage political activity of anyone with business before EPA
How the rest of the Hatch Act applies to you depends on your type of appointment. Most employees are lesser restricted while some are further restricted:
MOST EMPLOYEES (i.e., GS, SL/ST, Title 42)
You are “lesser restricted” under the Hatch Act, even while in DR status. For more information regarding your obligations under the Hatch Act, please see this Hatch Act Chart (pdf) (195.93 KB, 2025.01.31), which summarizes what EPA employees can and cannot do based on their appointment.
For Career SES, ALJs and Public Health Service Officers
You are “further restricted” under the Hatch Act so, even while in DR status, you have even more limitations. You cannot, for example, work in concert with any partisan candidate or political party, even on your own time.
Non-EPA Employment While in Deferred Resignation Status
While in DR status, you are not performing any EPA duties, but you are still subject to the ethics rules. Read through these reminders to ensure you remain ethical.
Representational Conflict of Interest Laws
- You are subject to the criminal representational conflict of interest statutes set forth at 18 U.S.C. § 203 and § 205. You cannot represent anyone else, including a new employer or client, as their agent or attorney in connection with any matter in which the United States is a party or has a direct and substantial interest. If you are compensated, then you also can’t receive payment for anyone else’s representational services while you are in DR status. In fact, the non-federal entity is also prohibited from paying you for representational services provided by you or someone else while you are in DR status.
- Do not contact any United States government official on behalf of the non-federal employer or client, even while in DR status. You are not representing the Agency or the United States government in this personal endeavor.
Misuse of Position
You cannot refer solely to your EPA position or title in connection with outside activity, including any listing on a website. If your bio mentions EPA, then it must also include other significant biographical details (at least two others) with EPA not having any undue prominence. See 5 C.F.R. § 2635.807(b).
You May Need to Seek Prior Approval for an Outside Activity
As outlined in the EPA supplemental ethics regulations, the following types of outside employment and activities require prior approval from an ethics official, even when you are in DR status and even if the outside activity is uncompensated:
- Consulting services
- Practicing a profession (e.g., accountant, Realtor, lawyer, or something else that requires specialized knowledge, training or education)
- Holding State or local public office
- Any subject matter that deals in significant part with the policies, programs, or operations of EPA, or any matter to which you are currently assigned or to which you have been assigned in the previous year, or
- Providing services to an EPA contractor or subcontractor, the holder of an EPA assistance agreement or sub-agreement, or a firm that is regulated by your Region or Office.
How to seek Prior Approval
For Most Employees (but not career SES or other public financial disclosure filers)
While in DR status, you won’t have access to EPA systems so you may not know who your current Deputy Ethics Official is. Send your request for approval of the outside activity to the EPA Ethics Office at ethics@epa.gov, and they will route your request appropriately.
Be sure to provide all of the information and a way for them to reach you if necessary.
INSTRUCTIONS: Please cut and paste the table below into an email and add your responses. Failure to provide all requested information will delay, and in some cases prevent, review of your outside activity request by EPA ethics officials.
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Information Needed |
Your Answer |
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Your Full Name |
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Your EPA Office & Subdivision (e.g., OAR/Office of Transportation and Air Quality or OGC/Air & Radiation Law Office) |
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Your EPA Title |
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Your Grade (e.g., GS-13) |
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Name of the business, person, or organization you will work for (in cases of self-employment, indicate the type of services to be rendered and estimate the number of clients or customers anticipated during the next 6 months) |
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Does the entity have any assistance agreements (e.g., grants) or contracts with EPA? If so, do you know what they are? |
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Description of the services to be performed for this entity. NOTE: If the services will involve any federal agency, please explain what your role will be. |
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Amount of compensation expected for the services performed (e.g., uncompensated, flat $2000 fee, $45/hour, etc.) |
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Estimated time to be devoted to the activity (e.g., full time, 10 hours a week, etc) |
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Affirm in writing that you have read, are familiar with, and will abide by the restrictions described at 5 C.F.R. part 2635 and 6401.102. |
Public Financial Disclosure filers only
Submit your request for outside activity to EPA Ethics directly. If you expect to continue to work with the potential employer after you formally separate from EPA, then you are also statutorily required to file a negotiation notification form within 3 business days of entering into negotiations with a non-federal employer. Use this link to get to the form that you must use to request approval of outside activity: Deferred Resignation: Ethics Rules for Public Financial Disclosure Filers (Outside Activity)
Post-Employment Obligations After You Separate from EPA
After you separate from EPA, you – like all former employees -- are still subject to the post-employment law. You may not appear before or communicate with government officials on behalf of another with the intent to influence government action on any specific party matter in which you personally or substantially participated as a federal employee. This is a permanent bar. See generally, 18 USC § 207(a)(1).
In addition, if you were a supervisor before you went into DR status, then you may not appear before or communicate with government officials on any such matters that were under your official responsibility during your last year of government service. This is a two-year bar after you last served as a supervisor. See generally, 18 USC § 207(a)(2).
“Senior Employees”[1] have additional one-year restrictions after serving as a senior employee, found at 18 USC § 207(c) (a one-year cooling off period for any matter pending before EPA) and 207(f) (a one-year period in which you may not aid, advise, or represent a foreign entity[2] on any matter pending before any official of the United States, including Congress, the President, or Vice President). See 18 USC § 207(f).
Specific information regarding the seeking/post-employment rules per appointment type are found in these advisories:
- Departing EPA for Career GS Non-Supervisors (pdf)
- Departing EPA for Career GS Supervisors (pdf)
- Departing EPA for Career SES/SL/ST/Title 42 Employees (pdf)
Prohibition on former official's acceptance of compensation from a contractor
In addition, for those with significant procurement responsibilities for a government procurement in excess of $10 million, you may be barred from accepting compensation from the winning contract of an Agency procurement for one year from the date you held certain positions or made certain decisions. See generally, 41 CFR § 3.104-3.
State Bar Restrictions (Attorneys Only)
If you are an attorney working for EPA, then even while you are in deferred resignation status, your client is still the United States. Because you are licensed to practice law, you must continue to adhere to obligations to your client and to your state bar rules. Pay particular attention to Rules 1.6 (client confidentiality), 1.7 (conflict of interest) and 1.11 (special conflicts of interest for former and current government officers and attorneys). You cannot reveal attorney-client privileged information nor take adverse positions to the federal government (your current client). Activities that may be off limits to you include advising opposing counsel on how to interpret statutes, regulations, policies, or terms and conditions; discussing litigation strategy; and advising, reviewing and revising draft complaints, briefs, and other similar legal documents. After you separate from EPA, you still have a continuing duty to your former client under Rule 1.9.
You should seek advice from your state bar counsel about your professional responsibility obligations.
EPA Grants Competition Policy
If this entity is a recipient of EPA grants funding, we suggest that they contact the Grants Competition Advocate (GrantsCompetition@epa.gov) to ascertain whether your concurrent employment with it creates any unique conflicts under EPA’s Competition Policy. Be advised that entities that violate EPA’s Competition Policy may be ineligible to receive EPA funding in the future.
- Deferred Resignation Frequently Asked Questions- FAQ grouped by topics such as Political Activity, Personal Speech and Activities, Gifts, etc.
Questions? Send an email to ethics@epa.gov.
[1] “Senior employees” are those whose “basic pay” in 2025 exceeds $195,231. Those paid on the GS scale do not meet the pay amount triggering “senior employee” status.
[2] A “foreign entity” means a government of a foreign country or a foreign political party. See 18 U.S.C. § 207(f)(3).